Parth Rakesh Mane has made history by clinching the junior world championship title in the 10m air rifle event at the ISSF Junior World Championship held in Lima, Peru. His remarkable achievement not only showcases his talent but also highlights India’s impressive performance at this prestigious competition.
On the third day of the championship, India continued to excel, adding to its medal haul with several standout performances. Parth secured a double gold, winning both the individual and team events. In the individual final, he demonstrated exceptional skill and composure, scoring an impressive 250.7 in the 24-shot round. This stellar performance allowed him to narrowly edge out China’s Huang Liwanlin, the reigning junior Asian champion, who finished just 0.7 points behind. The bronze medal went to Braden Peiser from the USA, while Sweden’s Victor Lindgren, a Paris Olympic silver medalist, finished fourth. Notably, Parth’s fellow countrymen, Ajay Malik and 15-year-old Abhinav Shaw, finished fifth and seventh, respectively, adding to the strength of India’s shooting team.
Earlier in the qualification round, which featured 62 competitors, Ajay Malik ranked second with a score of 628.8, while Parth took fourth with 627.7 and Abhinav sixth with 627.0 after 60 shots. This strong performance set the stage for their success in the team event, where the trio combined to achieve a total score of 1883.5, comfortably surpassing the scores of their rivals from the USA (1877.6) and Germany (1873.9) to secure the team gold medal.
The achievements didn’t stop there, as the junior women’s 10m air rifle team also made headlines. Gautami Bhanot, Sambhavi Kshirsagar, and Anoushka Thakur demonstrated their prowess by clinching gold in the team event. Gautami delivered an outstanding performance, finishing second in the qualification round with a score of 634.7, just shy of China’s Wang Zifei, who set a junior world record with 635.7. In the final, Gautami finished fourth, narrowly missing out on a bronze medal by just 0.2 points. Shambhavi Kshirsagar placed fifth, while Ojasvi Thakur finished in seventh place, showcasing the depth of talent among the Indian women shooters.
The trio of Gautami, Shambhavi, and Anoushka teamed up brilliantly in the team event, setting a junior world team record with a combined score of 1894.8, ultimately defeating the USA for the title. Norway took third place in the competition, further emphasizing the competitiveness of the event.
In the junior men’s and women’s skeet competitions, Indian shooters faced tougher challenges. Gurfateh Singh Sandhu and Bhavtegh Singh Gill both scored 112 in the qualification round, finishing 29th and 31st respectively after a countback. Harmehar Singh Lally scored 107, placing 44th. In the junior women’s skeet event, Mansi Raghuwanshi emerged as India’s top performer, finishing eighth with a score of 109, just one point shy of advancing. Mufaddal Dessawala and Shivani Raikwar scored 98, finishing 30th and 31st respectively.
Overall, India’s impressive performance at the ISSF Junior World Championship has placed them at the top of the medal tally, with five gold medals showcasing their dominance in shooting sports. The success of Parth Mane and the Indian shooting team reflects the hard work and dedication of these young athletes and bodes well for the future of Indian shooting on the global stage.
